Now before you pass any judgment regarding the title, I am a big fan of DIY...with some exceptions. I am a firm believer in making your wedding day unique and making it "so you" and one of the best ways to do that, is to DIY.
As a wedding vendor myself, I am also a firm believer in hiring professionals. Not because I want to get bookings and get paid (although that is an added bonus), but because planning a wedding is stressful. And hiring a professional directly relieves that stress (if you've got good ones!).
So I am a firm believer in both. But there is a fine line between DIYing and hiring, so here is my rule of thumb.
Never DIY if...
...it is going to add stress to your life.
...you don't have enough hours in a day to complete it.
...it has to be put together (even if it's a quick set up) on the wedding day (unless you have a wedding coordinator who can and will set it up - friends and family ARE NOT included)
...it needs to be fresh or will spoil within a week.
D Park Photography
The week before your wedding and the wedding day are all about relaxation. The planning should be done (minus those last minute RSVP's that you'll never get away from) and you should be enjoying some time with your fiancé and with your ladies! And on your wedding day, your dad doesn't want to be running around in the hot sun, assembling your arch. Of course, he will do anything for his little girl, but let him enjoy the FULL day!
With that being said, I am going to give you some examples just in case you need them:
Never DIY if...
...the project involves flowers. Flowers means you need to put it together the day of the wedding or they will get droopy and sad. And no one likes a sad centerpiece.
...the project involves refrigerated items. You're not going to have 200 favors sitting in your fridge r a wedding cake that feed 250 for a month before the wedding because you need to eat too!
....the project doesn't fit in your car. Because that means, it will have to be assembled when you get there...on the wedding day.
But it will save me money, so it's so worth it!
Believe it or not, DIYing doesn't always save you money. Yes, it may seem that printing your invitations at home is less expensive, but have you seen the cost of printer ink and nice paper??? And the number of hours you may spend getting it just right add up too!
Time is money.
So if you are thinking about DIYing anything at all, add up the number of hours you'll spend, the cost associated with it, the stress it will add to your life and then you can make a sounds decision. Is this project really a great idea?
